ORIGINAL LETTER FROM THE MASTER OF PHILOLOGERS

RASK, RASMUS.

Original handwritten and signed letter for "Hochzuverehrende Herren!" (= Verein für Geschichte und Alterthumskunde Westphalens).

Dated "Kopenhagen d. 13. Septbr. 1828." 1 1/2 p. 4to. In German.

In the letter Rask expresses great gratitude for having been announced "Ehrenmitglied [= honorary member] des Vereins für Geschichte und Alterthumskunde Westphalens"; the membership is effectuated from the 7th of August 1827, and Rask has received the diploma the same day as the letter is written. He describes what a great honor it is for him, and thanks the society many times, expressing his wish to be of use to them. He tells about his love for Scandinavian literature and his membership of the "nordischen Ges." and "isländischen liter. Gesellschaft." He wishes to live up to the responsibility this diploma gives him, "[u]m aber etwas für die germanische Literatur oder Alterthums-/ kunde leisten zu können, bedarf ich viel mehr Hilfe von andern/ als ich solche zu geben im Stande bin." He is currently working on an "altsächsische Grammatik", very much similar to his angelsachsische and friesische, but to be able to finish it properly, he is in want of an "Abschrift des bekannten Bamberger Codex von/ der Evangelienharmonie, der gerade des beträchtlichste Stück von diesem Dialekt ist." He has, however without luck, tried to get a hold of one and is now asking the society if they can be helpful.


With address and paper-seal on verso.

Rasmus Rask is one of the absolutely most prominent and famous Danish philologers and is very well esteemed worldwide. He was the first to systematically study the ancient Nordic languages and is the discoverer of the relations between the consonants in the Indo-European languages. This discovery served as the foundation of the rules Jacob Grimm later formulated, underlying the Germanic and High-German soundshifts. In PMM Rask is yielded as "one of the founders of the modern science of language." (PMM 266).
Letters from Rask are of the greatest rarity.

Order-nr.: 29131

DKK 12.000,00